Browse, filter, and select your list of sessions and activities. You can plan your schedule in advance and access it before and during the show via export or the conference app. This tool is provided for your convenience and does not guarantee admission to the sessions you select. Adding a session to your schedule does not register you for any preconference training or workshops.

Most support professionals know they have to keep their technical or "hard" skills sharp and up-to-date. But too many support professionals think the hard skills are more important than the dismissively named "soft" skills. However, technical skills don't exist in a vacuum. If you can't use words to explain technical topics, populate your knowledge base, write documentation, and answer users' questions, you can't help anyone. If you can't write clearly about technical topics, you simply cannot provide support. This session will explain why you must avoid elitist thinking about "hard skills" and help your team become great writers and speakers.

In this workshop, attendees will learn:

Why a dismissive attitude about "soft skills" can prevent you from recruiting well-rounded people--from a variety of backgrounds--to join your support teamHow to develop your support teams' writing skills

Why the term "soft skills" should be permanently replaced with "communication skills"

How to tell whether a job applicant has the writing skills needed to do the job